7pm WATCH: Mervyn King: "Quantitative easing will work"
BANK OF ENGLAND INCREASES QE BY £75BN
- Osborne agrees to Bank of England request to print £75 billion of extra money – ToryDiary
- Osborne backs QE, considers more options – Reuters
- "Britain’s interest rates-setting body voted to expand its purchases of gilts from £200bn to £275bn in an effort to bolster a badly flagging economy that is already showing signs of stagnation, as it left interest rates unchanged at 0.5 per cent." – FT report (£)
- George Osborne reaction: "It is a response to the deterioration in the international economy and it is also a response to the severe strains in the eurozone. I think this is a positive move for the British economy. The evidence shows that it will help keep interest rates down and boost demand and it will be a help for British families."
- "If they print more there is a danger of a weaker pound and more price rises. If they keep interest rates low they continue to punish the saver. … Their policy is not supporting the idea of a private sector led recovery. We need more cash and credit in the private sector, and more success in curbing infation." – John Redwood
- "More quantitative easing means more kicking the can down the road. It means preventing markets from adjusting, and it means perpetuating the misallocated capital, excessive risk-taking, and over-leveraged balance sheets that got us into this mess in the first place. To put it simply, printing money does nothing to solve our current problems. If anything, it makes them worse." - Tom Clougherty
KEN CLARKE'S COMMENTS
- Ken Clarke accuses Theresa May of "laughable and child-like" claims – Daily Telegraph
- Ken Clarke should be sacked for his renewed attack on Theresa May – ToryDiary
- However, Clarke regrets "the colourful language"… – PA
- …but still thinks he's correct – Guardian
- Never mind the cat: Theresa May is right – John Rentoul
- "At the moment, lots of Tory ministers – up to and including the Prime Minister – like to imply that they'd be doing far more on Europe, immigration and the Human Rights Act if it wasn't for the Lib Dems. But this row is showing that even if the Tories were governing on their own, the Cabinet would be divided about what to do on these issues." – James Forsyth
- "Ken Clarke & Theresa May summoned to 10 Downing Street" – Sky's Glen Oglaza
CONSERVATIVE CONFERENCE REACTION
- Osborne puts Cameron's huskies on to a tight leash – ToryDiary
- Three conclusions from conference season – The Economist
- Cristina Odone on Cameron's speech: "Britain's women can't resist a pitch perfectly judged to hit their emotional solar plexus: their children's future, their faith in the family, their sense of fair play. He has shown them that he listens, and recognises their anxieties."
- Hopi Sen reviews the conference season. "The Prime Minister and Chancellor told us that they want growth now, when in fact they seek a purging. They asserted optimism, and enthusiasm, and energy, as if the act of saying these things made them a policy."
OTHER NEWS IN BRIEF
- Lord Lawson: The €uro should be dismantled – ConHome Video
- Over-extended households indeed should pay off their bills – Andrew Lilico
- BBC set to cut 2,000 jobs by 2017 – BBC
- Sarah Palin finally confirms she will not run for President – Daily Telegraph
- "The race to become Birmingham’s directly-elected mayor has been thrown wide open after city MP and former minister Gisela Stuart announced she intended to stand. The MP for Edgbaston, who has been lauded by Labour colleagues for her election-wining campaigns, is to go up against former MP Sion Simon and former city council leader Sir Albert Bore for the Labour nomination." –Birmingham Post